Gingliang: "People forget who Tony Ferguson is."

Chinese UFC welterweight Li Jingliang spoke out about former interim lightweight division champion Tony Ferguson, who he will face on the night of Sept. 11 at UFC 279 in Las Vegas.

"People who talk about his losses and how he's never fought at welterweight forget who he is. You forget the guys whose faces he shredded. He choked incredible fighters. If you fought him, you'd know how hard it is to deal with El Cucuy. Tony is a pioneer in our sport, and you have to respect him.

I don't think moving up to welterweight was the wrong decision for Tony. There are a lot of legends out there. We're going to have a great, exciting fight with him," MMA Junkie quotes the Chinese as saying.

It's worth noting that Ferguson was a successful welterweight early in his career.